Wilkin Castillo leads the Marlins past Phillies

Wilkin Castillo has been out of Major League Baseball for the past 10 years. He made up for lost time by helping the Marlins beat the Phillies on Saturday.

It’s one of those stories that seems to be written for a Hollywood script. A veteran baseball player is away from the Majors for 10 years and comes back in shining fashion to help the Miami Marlins beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-3 on Saturday.

That really did happen and Wilkin Castillo, who was called up to The Show because both Jorge Alfaro and Chad Wallach are on the I.L., became an instant hero, if for one night.

Even with a losing record this season, these Marlins continue to make things interesting in their growth and development.

"“Playing in his first big league game since June 20, 2009, Castillo made a triumphant return by delivering a go-ahead two-run double off the right-field wall with two outs in the seventh inning. That capped a three-run frame that flipped a two-run Miami deficit into a one-run lead,” writes Paul Casella of MLB.com."

The Marlins have been getting plenty of attention for their young arms rising to the occasion, coming up from the minors to help the team because of injuries to their rotation. It’s only fitting this kind of story be told by the team in South Florida.

More from Marlins News

• Miami Marlins news: Another target gone
• Why didn’t the Miami Marlins sign JDM?
• Miami Marlins rejected Boston‘s trade offer
• Miami Marlins are pursuing Michael Conforto
• Miami Marlins need to spend to win

"“It was something indescribable,” Castillo said through an interpreter. “It’s a lot of effort, just playing winter ball in the Dominican League, the Mexican League, the Minor Leagues for 10 years. So just being up here and see things happening, I thank God, and I thank the Marlins for giving me the opportunity to be here at the Major League level.”"

The Marlins will count on Castillo to provide a stable presence behind the dish. Alfaro was placed on the 7-day I.L. prior to the start of the series in Philadelphia. Alfaro was hit in the helmet of a backswing but also suffered when a foul tip was hit off his catcher’s mask. Alfaro has been nicked a few times this season but has provided solid play at the plate both offensively and defensively.

Wallach has been dealing with a concussion since he last played in a ballgame on May 21. The team’s backup was first placed on the 10-day I.L., but the decision to extend it to 60 days was made when he was still dealing with the symptoms related to the injury.

"“The biggest part of that concussion protocol is that it’s not like we can say a day from now, he’s going to be ready to go out and start playing games,” manager Don Mattingly said about Wallach. “When we first did this, we thought seven days, he’s going to be ready to go — and here we are 30-something days into it and he’s still having little effects. We feel like things are getting better, but they’re not where we want them to be yet.”"

The Marlins look to sweep the Phillies on Sunday afternoon. Rookie Jordan Yamamoto hopes to continue his improbable start to his career, with 14 scoreless innings, intact. The Marlins are 19-15 in their last 34 games.